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Artist
Sean McGuire
12+ albums
celticfolksean mcguireirish
about
Sean McGuire By Ronan Nolan In the 1950s and 1960s, when the music of Coleman and Morrison seemed to a new generation to have been there forever, hearing Sean McGuire playing his fiddle on Radio Eireann had an uplifting effect. Sean McGuire was born in Belfast on December 26, 1927, into a musical family. His father, John, played piccolo, concert flute, whistle and fiddle. His brother Jim, who passed away in early 2002, was highly thought of as a fiddle player. The two brothers recorded an album together in 1982. At the age of 12 Sean began his fiddle playing. His two teachers were Professor George Vincent, from whom he learned fingering, and Madame May Nesbitt, who taught him his bowing technique. As a teenager he was first violinist with the Belfast Youth Orchestra and he turned down an invitation to join the Belfast Symphony Orchestra because he felt more at home playing traditional music. "I decided to devote my techniques to the furtherance and promotion of my culture," he once said. At the age of 15 he broadcast on BBC Overseas Radio. At 22 he won the gold medal at the All Ireland Oireachtas Fiddle Championship, scoring 100% from the four judges. In due course he became an all-round musician playing the piano, guitar, concert flute, whistle and uilleann pipes. In 1948 he joined the Malachy Sweeney Ceili Band as and played alongside his father John, and another fine musician Johnny Pickering. Later he formed The Sean Maguire Ceili Band, playing all over Ireland and En
